Folk art brought worlds of wonder to his 20th-century textile designs, used on everything from wallpaper to throw pillows today

Hi There! I currently live in a 1920s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe as "collected." I got into design via Landscape Architecture, which I studied at the University of Virginia. I've been writing about design online for quite a few years over at Hatch: The Design Public Blog.

Hi There! I currently live in a 1920s cottage in Atlanta that I'll describe... More »

Alexander Girard has been called the greatest colorist and textile designer of modern time. He began his career as an architect and interior designer in the 1920s. In 1949 he was tapped to design the Detroit Institute of Art's exhibit For Modern Living. He worked at Herman Miller and became involved with the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and his interest in Indian handicraft led to designing the 1955 exhibition Textiles and Ornamental Arts of India there.

One of his major projects included rebranding Braniff International Airlines. His motto was "the end of the plain plane," and he redesigned everything from the playing cards to the gates, planes and lounges. He also brought in fellow textile master Emilio Pucci to design the flight attendant uniforms.

Girard worked at Herman Miller until the 1970s. In 1978 he donated his and his wife's extensive folk art collection to the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He passed away in 1993, but his designs will live on for many years to come. Here's a sampling of them.

Comments

Ben Fogt says:

Don't forget Girard's designs for the Miller House. He designed the textiles for each season to go along with Eero Saainen's architecture and Dan Kiley's landscapes. Girard's influence has been very present in the rest of the community as well.

3 months ago · Like

nmharleyrider says:

If you ever get to Santa Fe, do not miss the Girard wing of the Folk Art Museum. There are thousands and thousands of examples of folk art in it and it is one of the brightest, most colorful museum exhibits I have ever seen.

3 months ago · Like

Becky Harris says:

Ben, thanks for the reminder! So interesting you brought up Dan Kiley - I pulled a monograph off my shelf this week after realizing I could get $400+ for it, then realized I would never want to part with it ;)

nmharleyrider, Santa Fe is one of the few American spots on my list I've never visited, and when I found out about the collection researching this article it bumped up to number one. I am a huge folk art fan and collector - I read that Girard's collection had over 100,000 pieces!

3 months ago · Like

Modern Icon: Alexander Girard

Folk art brought worlds of wonder to his 20th-century textile designs, used on everything from wallpaper to throw pillows today

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